Fried Frank Real Estate Leader Sees A March Litigation Wave
Thank You! Law360 (February 26, 2021, 3:39 PM EST) A new wave of litigation is likely in March as disputes involving tenants, landlords and borrowers remain and parties are running out of alternatives, one of Fried Frank s real estate litigation leaders told Law360 in a recent interview.
Janice Mac Avoy
Janice Mac Avoy, a partner in New York and co-head of Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson LLP s real estate litigation department, spoke to Law360 as part of a five-part series of conversations with female real estate leaders during Women s History Month, a year into the COVID-19 pandemic.
From left: Thor Equities’ 590 Fifth Avenue, the Mark Hotel and Wonder Works’ Vitre
Churchill Real Estate’s Justin Ehrlich has seen a lot during his time as a developer and lender in New York. He witnessed the collapse of the real estate market during the 2008 financial crisis, followed by the mad rush to build luxury condo towers in some of Manhattan’s swankiest neighborhoods.
But nothing compares to the past nine months, he said. “It’s not normal,” Ehrlich noted. “It’s the worst I’ve ever seen.”
He pointed to an unusual rise in Uniform Commercial Code foreclosures by mezzanine lenders, which he sees as a canary in the coal mine for a mound of distress expected to hit the market in the next year. While judicial foreclosures are still banned under an emergency order by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, UCC foreclosures on some high-stakes projects have been moving ahead in recent months since they can bypass state courts.
From left: Thor Equities’ 590 Fifth Avenue, the Mark Hotel and Wonder Works’ Vitre
Churchill Real Estate’s Justin Ehrlich has seen a lot during his time as a developer and lender in New York. He witnessed the collapse of the real estate market during the 2008 financial crisis, followed by the mad rush to build luxury condo towers in some of Manhattan’s swankiest neighborhoods.
But nothing compares to the past nine months, he said. “It’s not normal,” Ehrlich noted. “It’s the worst I’ve ever seen.”
He pointed to an unusual rise in Uniform Commercial Code foreclosures by mezzanine lenders, which he sees as a canary in the coal mine for a mound of distress expected to hit the market in the next year. While judicial foreclosures are still banned under an emergency order by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, UCC foreclosures on some high-stakes projects have been moving ahead in recent months since they can bypass state courts.